


After Dark

by anovelblogwrites



Category: The Grisha Trilogy - Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, Inspired by Hamilton, alina and nikolai are married, mal? i don't know him, you know it's bad when your fandoms start to overlap like this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-05
Updated: 2017-08-05
Packaged: 2018-12-11 14:32:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11716332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anovelblogwrites/pseuds/anovelblogwrites
Summary: The king of Ravka works too hard.





	After Dark

**Author's Note:**

> As certified Hamiltrash, I couldn’t help but note the similarities between Alexander Hamilton and our beloved king of Ravka. The conversation between Alexander and Eliza in “Best of Wives and Best of Women” inspired this.

It was the cold that awoke Alina. The fire that had been roaring in the hearth when they’d gone to bed was hardly more than dim embers. She stretched across the mattress, fingers searching for Nikolai’s body heat. Her hands kept moving, finding nothing but cold sheets. Disoriented, she sat up and blinked rapidly until her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Nikolai was not lying next to her. In fact, he wasn’t even in the room. 

She did not have to wonder at where he was. With a sigh, she crawled out of bed and into her slippers. She entered the sitting room, and sure enough, the door directly across from their bedchambers was opened just a crack. A sliver of light escaping through it. 

Alina opened the door just enough for her to hover in the entrance. Her husband was hunched over his desk, surrounded by crumpled papers. She spoke softly, as not to startle him, “Nikolai, come back to sleep.” 

“I can’t,” Nikolai replied without looking up from his work. “The nobles found out about the new tax plan I’ve been working on. A few sent word this morning that they wanted to discuss it with me.” The way he said the word _discuss_ suggested anything but diplomatic conversation would be taking place. 

The curtains were still wide open, granting a view of the moonlit sky and the nearly dark city below. Crossing her arms, Alina raised an eyebrow. “In the middle of the night? You should have warned me, I would’ve called for tea.” 

Nikolai let out a dry, humorless chuckle, “Tomorrow.” 

He turned in his chair, finally regarding Alina directly. He ran a hand through his rumpled hair, and pulled at the roots, making it stick up even more.“They knew it wouldn’t be enough time for me to prepare.”

Alina shuffled across the room until she was hovering over Nikolai. She placed gentle a hand on Nikolai’s shoulder, gave it a reassuring squeeze. 

“They will listen to you,” she promised, not entirely sure she believed her own words. Nikolai certainly didn’t, judging by the look he gave her. 

“Perhaps if I had your iron will,” he mused, and covered her hand with his. 

Alina shook her head. “You just need to be your brilliant, charming self.” 

He smiled a little at her, but it was a haggard ghost of the showy grin she was expecting. She felt the corners of her lips turn down and added, “And some rest.” 

“What I _need_ ,” Nikolai dropped her hand, and picked up his pen, “is to finish writing this down.” 

His shoulders slumped back over his desk, as if a tangible weight was pushing them down. A crease formed between Alina’s brows as she watched him. “And you think a stack of papers, and a king who can barely keep his eyes open, will convince them.” She tried to maintain her gentle tone, but there was a bite to her words. 

Nikolai whipped around in his chair to shoot her an icy glare. “Something has to. The imbalance of wealth is...” 

He trailed off, seeming to be at a loss for words. This was a rare occurrence, and an unmistakable indicator of his frustration. Whether it was because of the Court and their lack of compassion, or his own naivety, Alina was not sure. 

She whispered, “What is infinite?”

Knowing the answer, Nikolai looked at up at her desolately. She reached up and stroked his cheek, running her thumb over the shadow beneath his eye. 

“You can’t change human nature in one night, Nikolai.” 

“I have to start somewhere,” he responded indignantly. 

And he called _her_ stubborn. Alina let loose an exasperated sigh, shaking her head. “You act as if you’re running out of time.” 

“Aren’t I?”

Alina couldn’t help but roll her eyes. Her husband, the tragic hero. “Not as fast as you’d like to think.”

“You’ll do amazing things, Nikolai.” She continued, her sardonic tone replaced with a genuinity that Alina had not felt in a long time. Her time as Tsaritsa has been trying, and she often found doubted every move she made. But if there was one thing she had complete faith in, it was Nikolai. He seemed to brighten at her declaration. She extended her hand to him, as she added pointedly, “Starting in the morning.” 

She tried not to look surprised when he accepted it, and allowed himself to be led out of the study. Alina guided them through the dark, into their bedchamber with sunlight cupped in her palm. 

Nikolai all but flopped onto the mattress, pulling Alina down with him.

“You’re lucky you’re so persistent,” Nikolai grumbled around a yawn, as he brought her closer to him. 

She angled her head from where it rested on his chest to look at him. She countered, “Well, I learned from the best.” 

Nikolai considered this. “I am the best, aren’t I?” 

“There he is,” Alina said. And although her tone was flat, and her dark eyes rolled, the corners of her mouth had pulled up just a little.


End file.
